Are we sure this is genuine? I only ask because it contains so many errors that are cliche, such as “could care less”. It’s reads like a test letter one would get in a writing course, where you have to correct all the errors.

Maurice Miner

Very perspicacious point raised, KK71.

It appears utterly bizarre coming from the hand of a Mayor (for Christ’s sake!), given the no-doubt hundreds of minions whose job it is to save the Mayor from embarrassment, not to mention SpellChecquer!

It would be extraordinary if such a missive came from the Mayor’s office.

By the same token, we do in fact live in very interesting times!

Justin St.Denis

Wrong. Years ago, I had to edit a report penned by a provincial panel of physicians, medical ethicists etc. under the direction of the provincial deputy minister of health. The core issue was the examination of trends in drug prescribing by the province’s medical community. Their “final” report was approximately 100 pages of prose and as many charts/graphs. Throughout their report, they referred to the “judicial use of prescription drugs”. Drug use by the judiciary was NOT the issue of the report; rather, the report was trying to address, define and promote the “judicious” prescribing of drugs by the medical community. This was about a decade before computers, so there was no “search/replace” to use. This one error occurred over 80 times in the report ( I keep score). There were about a dozen other egregious misunderstandings of vocabulary, and generally convoluted grammar throughout. I thereafter learned that this level of butchery was typical of provincial “ruling elites”. Though shocked and disgusted by this, it was among the factors which spelled “opportunity” to us, so we relocated to Canada to exploit same and make lots of money. And then we started having kids. We have always described our dual-citizenship kids as “paid in Canada”…….

k2

In fairness, it’s a different side of the brain: people who are competent scientists are typically not particularly gifted in writing or language skills, (and vice versa). Not many actual Renaissance men and women around these days, it seems to me. Also, I imagine that English was possibly a second language for a lot of them.

Justin St.Denis

In fact, the committe comprised physicians, medical ethicists, lawyers, and other disciplines. And trust me, 30 years ago they were all first-language English speakers. In this particular case, in this particular province, at that particular time.

I have always found that men of science usually write very clearly, albeit in the vocabulary of their area of study.

Wiki Petersburg Va. is an old rail town which has seen better days. 80% black folks who mostly vote DemocRat. Town really run by a city manager with toothless mayor chosen by fellow councilors. No surprises.